Quack doctor kills mother and child in failed surgery in Lagos

A 32-year-old man, Nonlonfun Celestine, has been arrested by the Lagos State Police Command, for allegedly parading himself as medical doctor.

The suspect who is a Junior Secondary School dropout, was paraded on Monday in Lagos by the state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni.

The father of two met his waterloo when he conducted a surgery on a pregnant woman who died alongside her baby.
The family of the deceased, who were angered by the death of their daughter and grandchild, wrote a petition to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba to investigate the sudden death of the woman and her child.
They said they suspected foul play.

When police operatives stormed the clinic, it was discovered that the suspect, who hails from Badagry in Lagos State, had been parading himself as a medical doctor with fake certificates.

Investigations revealed that the University of Ibadan Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery certificate, certificate of annual practicing license from the Medical and Dental Association of Nigeria and the Certificate of Registration of Business from the Corporate Affairs Commission, with which he had registered his hospital, were all fake.

Celestine said he was enrolled in an auxiliary nursing school in Benin Republic before returning to Nigeria.
Celestine said: “I am from Lagos State but my mother is from Benin Republic. I lived with my mother for over 18 years over there and it was in the country I graduated with a certificate of nursing and returned to join my father in Nigeria in 2004. I started selling drugs at Badagry but later moved to Tomaro in Apapa area where I started a clinic and taking care of the sick within the community.

“The pregnant woman was brought to the clinic by her husband and her brother at about 4am on November, 12. She was convulsing seriously. I administered first aid treatment but she didn’t get better. About four hours later, I called her husband to take her to another hospital for proper medical assistance, but he begged me to continue trying my best because he didn’t have enough money to take her.

“He gave me N8,000 to continue with the treatment and left and came back at about 8pm. I carried out a surgery on the woman and she gave birth to a baby boy who died almost immediately he was delivered?
“Two hours after, the mother also died. I called the husband who was at the waiting room and gave him the news. He was bitter about it. He however came with his family member to take her remains and the dead baby for burial.
“I learnt the woman was buried the following day. I was surprised when some men came to my clinic to look for me. When I stepped out of my office to see who the person was, it was then I discovered they were police officers.
“The policemen then told me they had received a petition about my illegal operation of a hospital in the area by the community leaders and I was arrested.
“unfortunately for me, when I was about taking money from my drawer to bribe the policemen, my fake medical certificate fell off and the policemen picked it up and asked where I got it from and I told them it wasn’t original that I paid to get it from a friend when I wanted to register my clinic.
“I presented my nursing certificate to the Corporate Affairs Commission for registration of my clinic but they turned it down. So I had to pay N35,000 to a friend to get the fake certificates. I did not kill woman and the baby intentionally.”
Owoseni stated that the suspect would be charged to court after completion of investigation.